10 best messenger apps and chat apps for Android

Slowly but surely, the world is moving away from SMS and MMS as the default way to text message people. It started years ago with apps like AOL Instant Messenger and has evolved into a plethora of options that all work really well. The evolution definitely kicked it up a notch over the last few years. You have basically more options now than you’ll ever need. Which messenger apps are the best? In this list, we’ll explore the best messenger apps and chat apps for Android.

Here are some more chat apps and messenger apps you might like!

10 best texting apps and SMS apps for Android

Text messaging is among the most popular ways to communicate in the whole world. It’s quick, easy to do, and it doesn’t require you pausing what you’re doing like phone calls do. We do understand …

10 best video chat apps for Android

Video calling is about as easy as it can possibly get these days. You can do it on computers, mobile devices, and even tablets. It’s popular and widespread enough that you even have options. There …

Discord is easily among the best messenger apps for gamers. It features cross-platform support between most mobile phone and computer operating systems. There is also a web client for those platforms without a native app. The app also features voice chat, multiple text chats, GIF support, and more. People on the service can create their own servers or join others as they need. It’s mostly for gaming. However, some people use it just for its fantastic organizational system and above average voice chat capabilities. It’s also completely free with no in-app purchases or ads.

Facebook Messenger (Lite)

Price: Free

Facebook Messenger is among the most popular messenger apps. Facebook has two chat apps for this. The regular one includes all the features like chat heads, stickers, and other features. The Lite version is just a basic chat app with far fewer frills. Those heavily invested in the Facebook Messenger experience may want the regular app. However, those who don’t want to deal with Facebook’s nonsense should use the Lite version. Facebook is eventually introducing ads to these chat apps. However, they are otherwise free to use. Facebook had some security issues earlier in 2018. We don’t imagine the social network becoming irrelevant due to that, though. Many people will still use Facebook.

Google Allo or Google Hangouts

Price: Free

Google Allo and Google Hangouts are both messenger apps. Allo is the newer one. It features integration with Google Assistant and the usual stuff like stickers, GIF support, and more. Allo also supports Google Duo as well as an incognito chat that self-destructs if needed. Google Hangouts is the older the app. It has superior cross-platform support between computers and phones. Hangouts also has video chats, voice chats, and a few other fun features included. You can’t go wrong either way. They’re both decent chat apps if you can get your friends and family to migrate over.

Kik

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Kik is another popular messenger app. It lets you choose a screen name instead of a real name or a phone number. That gives it a distinctly old school feeling. The app is especially popular with mobile gamers and people who like random chatting mostly. The app also includes stickers, emoji, group chats, video chats, themes, and Material Design. The in-app purchases give you additional sticker packs and other stuff like that. Another good chat app in this genre is GroupMe. It has many of the same features.

Slack

Price: Free / $6.67-$12.50 per users (business use only)

Slack is one of the better chat apps for business. It has an extremely clean and professional look and feel. Groups can create channels, conduct voice calls, and more. The app also features support for third party apps like Giphy, Google Drive, Asana, and other fun or productive tools. Users can also join multiple Slack servers. It’s kind of like a more professional version of Discord, honestly. Like Discord, it’s also entirely free with no in-app purchases. Those with larger teams that need more features can pay an optional subscription fee for extra stuff.

We have some more related app lists to check out here!

15 best Android apps of 2018!

Here it is ladies and gentlemen. The crème de la crème. The Android apps that stand alone at the top of the pantheon. These apps have become ubiquitous with Android and if you’re looking for …

5 best dialer apps and contacts apps for Android

Dialer apps and contacts apps are a bit of a niche market. In most cases, the stock dialer and contacts app is more than good enough most of the time. However, there are some cases …

Skype

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Skype is one of the most recognizable messenger apps ever. Everybody knows what Skype is and what it’s about. You can text chat, video call, and voice call other members. You can even call people on a real phone number with a nominal fee. The app includes a few extra features that may or may not be useful. It depends on what you need. Still, this has excellent cross-platform support, support for multiple chats, and support for most file types, including documents, GIFs, and other stuff. It’s a rock solid option, even if it’s not as relevant as it used to be.

Snapchat is one of the more unique messenger apps. It supports quite a few things, including voice calls, video messages, photo messages, and text messages. The service deletes messages after viewing. That means there is no history to speak of outside of a streak counter. There are also Snapchat Stories. That lets people send proverbial status updates that all of their followers can view. They expire in 24 hours. Many of the app’s features are imitated by other apps (Instagram, mostly). However, Snapchat is still fairly popular among the younger folks.

Telegram is among the most popular messenger apps for privacy. It boasts 256-bit symmetrical AES encryption, 2048-bit RSA encryption, and more. That makes it among the safest messaging services out there. The app also has file sharing, cross-platform support, group chats, GIF support, and more. It grew in popularity very quickly. That made it hard to judge at first. However, tons of people use the service now. Signal Private Messenger is another decent app in this space. However, Telegram is just better.

Viber

Price: Free with in-app purchases

Viber isn’t big in some parts of the world. However, it’s among the most popular messenger apps ever. It boasts a full experience, including messages, calls, a self-destruct chat, group chats, video messages, video chats, and more. It also includes some extras like stickers, worldwide news, and more. Most of the sticker packs cost extra, hence the in-app purchases. This is actually a fairly well-rounded chat experience. However, it is a little heavier than most chat apps. Those that want a cleaner, more minimal experience may want to avoid this one. Additionally, this one sees most of its popularity from countries outside of the United States. That’s not a big deal, but just a heads up.

Everybody knows WhatsApp. It’s the most popular messenger app in the world, after all. It has a ton of features, gets frequent updates, and competes positively with basically every other chat app. It includes voice and video chats, text messages, group chats, support for most multimedia formats like GIFs, video, etc, and more. It’s powerful, accessible, and popular. That’s the holy triumvirate for chat apps. It’s also free with no in-app purchases.

Thank you for reading! We have a few more related app lists to check out here!

15 best Android browsers of 2018!

Web browsers are one of the most important apps on any device. Having the right features and performance while browsing the web can literally change your entire experience. Finding the right one can be difficult …

10 best free calls apps for Android

The era of using actual land line telephones have all but come to an end. Between easily accessible Internet and cheaper smartphones, it’s easy to cut that cord for good. You’ll still need to find …